A marvel of its age

Opened in 1871 Souter remains an iconic beacon. Hooped in red and white and standing proud on the coastline midway between the Tyne and the Wear. Souter is a special place all year round and was the first lighthouse in the world designed and built to be powered by electricity.

To the north The Leas is a two and a half mile stretch of magnesian limestone cliffs, wave-cut foreshore and coastal grassland. The cliffs and rock stacks of Marsden Bay are home to nesting Kittiwakes, Fulmar, Cormorants, Shags and Guillemots. South of the lighthouse is Whitburn Coastal Park and Nature Reserve – reclaimed colliery land, now a haven for wildlife.